National Missing Persons Day

Missing Persons Day is an annual day of commemoration and takes place on the first Wednesday in December each year. Last year’s national Missing Persons Day took place on Wednesday, 5 December 2018 and was marked by a commemorative ceremony at King’s Inns, Dublin 1.

Missing Persons Day complements the existing International Missing Children’s Day and has a number of objectives. It commemorates those who have gone missing and recognises the lasting trauma for their families and friends. It also draws attention to open or unsolved missing persons cases, and creates an opportunity to provide information on available support services.

On 4 December 2013, Ireland held its inaugural National Missing Persons Day with a commemorative ceremony which took place at Farmleigh House Dublin. The inaugural ceremony was attended by the families and friends of missing persons, as well as many of the organisations working in the community on their behalf. It incorporated musical and personal tributes and reflections, followed by a tree planting ceremony in the grounds of Farmleigh House. The event was also attended by the second level students of Davis College, Mallow, Co. Cork, who organised a campaign to raise awareness of missing persons issues and to call for a national Missing Persons Day.

Missing Persons Day has since been developed into an annual campaign in partnership with the organisations working in this area.